With Eyes of Ice

It felt like there were plenty of CGs. Steina is the best.

This is my first time playing a kinetic visual novel. The main reason I love playing visual novels is due to having the choice to control the story and seeing the different branches of how the story could turn out but this has none of that nor any gameplay of any sort and so I picked this up out of curiosity Music: was ok but its was really repetitive to the point I had to lower the BGM volume as it got annoying at some point since the same bgm would be replayed for a majority of the game. Art: was decent, I liked how many CGs we got. Some of the backgrounds were gifs/slighlty animated (like the snow for example) but they ended up being glitchy so was not a fan. Characters: I dont think any of these characters are strictly black or white they all had their likeable and unlikeable aspects at the same time (with the exception of Kai who is an absolue cinammon roll!) Even the 'villain' of this story in my opinion is just a victim and while I sympathised with her I also did not approve of her actions. Story/plot: I liked the story setting and it taking place in Iceland. I ended up learning all sorts of stuff such as badstofas, skyr, carroway herbs and so on which I ending up googl…

An interesting story with complex characters, which goes in a number of unexpected directions and deals with uncommon themes. It was a bit slow in places, and I sometimes wish the emphasis was shifted more towards our main trio but overall I would recommend giving this VN a try to anyone interested in the premise. ---vague spoilers beyond this point--- Greta is a character who is very different from me as a person, and after a certain point in the narrative I found myself getting almost annoyed with her passivity and the way she reacted to things, especially to Steina. Steina was the more relatable character, and it felt more like she was the protagonist. I found myself infuriated with her, but more infuriated with the people around her. I could understand her feelings because in my worst moments I have felt some of them. If either Greta or Nataniel had called Steina out, had just treated her like a human being instead of tiptoeing around her like she was simultaneously fragile and infectious then I believe things would never have gone the way they did. If this game had choices I would have loved to see an ending where Greta actually talks to Steina, sharing her kind thoughts but…

The author’s sympathy for Steina resonates deeply, as the story is rich enough to be viewed from various perspectives. Although this vn contrasts light with darkness, the nuance of other shades is palpable, truly revealing the full depth of the plot

the thing is that i really really enjoyed this vn. it is beautifully written and engaging, i like the characters, every story beat and hook got me interested and emotionally invested, i was thinking about it when i wasn't reading it and thinking about how badly i want to know what's going to happen next and how i wish i could back to it. it was a really good read. but also, when i finished it, i was kind of struck by this sense of like.... anticlimax i suppose. like, the actual climactic scene is very intense and very emotional and big, but i mean the ending gave me a sort of sense of aimlessnes and uncertainty, it was a bit sudden and short and i can't help thinking something to the vein of 'that's it?'. it felt like too small of an ending for all we had just seen happen. and i just wasn't sure what i was meant to take away from this story or why this story was told and for what, even though i could gleam any number of potential ideas or themes from the story, it doesn't really commit to any of them. and to be clear, it's fine from a story to just be atmospheric, just be based entierly on vibes, not every story needs a moral or a message or theme, and honestly i wasnt initi…

With Eyes Of Ice is a superbly well-written visual novel set in 19th Century Iceland. It focuses on the life of Greta and cleverly incorporates her interactions with a host of characters; Grandma Ragna, Petur, Nataniel, Steina and Kai as well as cameo appearances of several additional and important characters. As mentioned, the story is brilliantly written, though it can get rather brutal and even upsetting at times - a reflection of the author's key theme, pointing out that life is by no means all wine and roses. The UI, artwork and music are excellent, though may I place special emphasis on the music - beautiful, aptly-selected pieces. Assuming the reader can handle some nasty developments, I highly recommend this VN as a great read.